On the outset of Onimusha: Method of the Sword, Miyamoto Musashi is fixated on liberating himself from the Oni Gauntlet. This mystical artifact, by an odd accident, has turn into certain to our hero. However the cussed younger samurai doesn’t need the gauntlet’s powers. Musashi’s sole want is to show himself by his palms alone. Nevertheless, because the journey unfolds, Musashi’s views regularly shift and broaden. He begins to embrace the trail he’s discovered himself on, changing into extra open to his new place on the planet.
The motion sport begins to open up after the early moments. Missions with tighter scopes move right into a wider location that gives new challenges to beat and extra room to discover our rising arsenal of talents.
This last gameplay preview picks up proper the place the Onimusha: Method of the Sword Demo leaves off. After Musashi duels rival swordsman Sasaki Ganryu on the stage of Kiyomizu-dera Temple, he’s transported to an otherworldly dimension, the “Oni Refuge.” It’s a surreal panorama the place gravity is a suggestion. Islands float within the sky, and we conjure ruins from skinny air.
Then the Genma barge in. Invading from the depths of hell, these demons conflict with the sacred surroundings, however they’ll quickly meet Musashi’s blade. We swiftly reduce them to shreds. When our katana connects with Genma, they’re carved aside on the angles our sword travels by their twisted varieties. We name it dynamic dismemberment. This method splits them in two throughout the torso, hacks them from head to toe, and… effectively, you get the image.
Earlier than lengthy, Musashi plucks an Oni Bow from the wreckage of this realm. Lastly, we are able to return hearth towards Genma archers. The bow additionally permits us to unravel environmental puzzles that require vary. Our arrows can set off traps, too. Ultimately, they’ll even come in useful throughout a duel, severing a boss from its energy supply, as soon as Musashi returns to Kyoto.
After excising the Genma from the Oni Refuge, the clouds of Malice looming above Kyoto start to carry. But darkness nonetheless lingers right here. Our subsequent cease in Japan’s historic capital is Rokudo Chinno-ji Temple. It’s one in every of many real-life areas within the sport. Legends say it exists on the crossroads between our world and the gates of hell. For Musashi and his allies, this sanctuary turns into residence. It’s their base of operations within the battle to save lots of the town.
Kyoto is an enormous location far bigger than wherever we’ve seen within the sport. Nevertheless, our skill to wander and discover its streets has bounds in the intervening time. Hellish constructions erupt from the earth and a poisonous fog sweeps by city, forming blockades that imprison any locals who haven’t but fled the demonic corruption.
Our quest to liberate Kyoto begins by sealing rifts the place Genma manifest in our dimension. These creatures spawn in all sizes and styles, however Musashi slays them and absorbs their souls all the identical. We’ll make use of those. Alongside treasures we uncover, souls assist us improve gear and unlock new talents to face what awaits on the trail forward.
This path finally results in Kiyomizu-zaka slope, a pilgrim street that climbs up the hillside to the temple the place we began this journey. Right here lies the important thing to unlocking a lot of Kyoto. However to even enter this place we should first face some actually formidable foes.
Again within the Oni Refuge, we had a run-in with Daidara, a towering Genma with a hulking body and bottomless urge for food. The gluttonous big’s starvation even extends to devouring our hard-earned souls. We’re compelled to make tactical selections within the warmth of battle about when to soak up souls, or danger shedding them to Daidara’s ravenous maw.
This isn’t the one Genma after one thing of ours. One other presents to free Musashi from his gauntlet… at the price of his total arm. Our hero considers this deal, if just for a second. Although Musashi has warmed as much as his Oni Gauntlet, he nonetheless hopes to take away it.
It’s a want Rasho-gan is barely too glad to grant. This multi-armed monster has been posing as a deity at Yasui Konpiragu Shrine. Right here, he fulfills worshipers’ wishes within the worst attainable methods. Constructed from the physique components of his victims (just like the leg of a person who longed to be rid of knee ache), Rasho-gan wields his additional limbs to throw every thing he has at us, together with uprooting bushes, boulders, and even total buildings to crush Musashi.
Escaping Rasho-gan’s clutches with our lives drives us to make full use of the sport’s deep arsenal of fight methods. For our efforts, the shrine guardians reward us with Oni Energy. Musashi accepts this new energy, and we are able to now tear down the demonic obstacles round Kyoto. Now it’s time to take down the supply of the poisonous fog choking the town.
This life-sapping mist emerges from eerie crops, and it clears after we chop them down. Nevertheless, Byakue stands in the way in which of our gardening. Earlier than we are able to fell the ultimate tree, this animalistic Genma fees in. As we brawl, the brute will get coated in its personal blood and grows wilder. Talent alone might enable Musashi to outlast this creature, however one other technique proves clever. Delivering fewer however extra devastating blows quickly tames the beast.
After finishing the mission, the evil haze over a lot of Kyoto clears. The townsfolk come out and rejoice. Now, extra of the town is open for us to discover. That is simply the beginning of our action-packed journey. It’s one which gamers can sit up for experiencing for themselves when Onimusha: Method of the Sword launches for PlayStation 5 on September 4. Pre-orders for the sport can be found now at PlayStation Retailer.
